Hawaiian Islands Weather Details & Aloha Paragraphs / July 9-10, 2015

Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Thursday…along with the minimums Thursday:

86 – 77  Lihue, Kauai
89 – 78  Honolulu, Oahu
84 – 71  Molokai
88 – 76  Kahului, Maui
87 – 76  Kailua Kona
86 – 73  Hilo, Hawaii

Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands, as of Thursday evening:

0.14  N Wailua ditch, Kauai
0.26  Manoa Lyon Arboretum, Oahu
0.40  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.05  Kahoolawe
0.13  Kula 1, Maui
0.51  Kawainui Stream, Big Island

The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…as of Thursday evening:

18  Poipu, Kauai – NE
31  Kuaokala, Oahu – N
27  Molokai – ENE
27  Lanai – NE
27  Kahoolawe – NNE
27  Maalaea Bay, Maui – NNE
35  Kealakomo, Big Island – NE

Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live web cam on the summit of near 13,800 foot Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii. This web cam is available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon shining down during the night at times. Plus, during the nights you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise and sunset too… depending upon weather conditions.

Aloha Paragraphs

Tropical Depression 4E (Ela) is not a threat to Hawaii – other than
rising high surf along our east facing shores Friday into Saturday
more information below

This satellite image shows low clouds out ahead of TD Ela, with the
low level circulation center further to the east-northeast of the
islands – plus the two tropical disturbances south and southwest
Looping version

Partly cloudy to mostly cloudy over the state…tropical
moisture approaching from the east – association with
tropical depression Ela – Looping version

Showers over the nearby ocean…reaching the
windward sides locally…especially Oahu and
Maui – looping radar image

High Surf Advisory…east shores of all islands –
Friday morning through Saturday night

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

Our trade winds will continue…before faltering at some point Friday into the weekend. Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean, along with a real-time wind profiler of the central Pacific. We find a moderately strong, near 1025 millibar high pressure system to the north of the state. Meanwhile, there are several low pressure cells along the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) south of Hawaii…moving more or less westward. Our trade winds will remain active for the time being. The forecast continues to show tropical depression Ela moving by to the northeast and north of the islands into this weekend…which will interrupt our local trade wind flow in the process. Looking ahead, the trade winds will return Monday into Tuesday onwards, helping to sweep away the expected very muggy conditions from our islands then.

As the trade winds continue to blow…there will be off and on windward showers. It continues to look like Friday into the weekend will have our island weather conditions turning very muggy, with off and on showers around locally. There’s even the outside chance of some thunder and lightning…especially during the afternoon hours. It’s not out of the question that we could experience some localized flash flooding as well, as this high moisture area moves through the island chain. In addition, there may be more showers arriving later Sunday into next Monday, in the wake of the systems passage…which may keep the windward sides off and on wet for several days thereafter. Finally, this storm is generating high surf, which will arrive along our east facing shores Friday morning. I’ll be back with more updates on all of the above and below, I hope you have a great Thursday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.

Tropical depression 4E (Ela) remains active in our central Pacific…located about 500 miles east-northeast of Hilo, Hawaii. Here’s what the official CPHC graphical track map shows for its path moving by offshore to our northeast. Here’s a satellite image, along with the looping version. Here’s what the hurricane models are showing for this weakening tropical cyclone. In addition, and according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC), there are also two other tropical disturbances active in our general area as well. The first of these disturbances has showers and thunderstorms about 600 miles south of Hilo, on the Big Island…while the other area is located about 925 miles southwest of Honolulu. Here’s a satellite image showing these two areas, one marked with a yellow X, the other with an orange X. By the way, I’m not worrying about either of these two tropical systems…as far as becoming a threat to the islands. Here’s a real time wind profiler, showing these two vortex’s, plus Tropical depression 4E (Ela)…to the east-northeast of Hawaii.

Here on Maui…it’s 540am Thursday morning, with mostly clear skies, although with lots of low clouds banked-up against the windward sides, with some showers falling. The air temperature here in Kula, at my upcountry weather tower was 54.7 degrees, while it was 77 down at the Kahului airport, 77 out in Hana…and 48 up at the summit of the Haleakala Crater at near the same time. 

– We’re into the mid-afternoon now, under partly cloudy skies, with some localized cloudy areas too. The trade winds are blowing my wind chimes around up here in Kula…which provides some relief from the 84 degree temperature reading.

– It’s now around 530pm here in Kula, and its cloudy, somewhat foggy, and lightly raining. It’s beginning to feel steamy already, and it looks like it will become even more so over the next several days.

World-wide tropical cyclone activity:

>>> Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> Gulf of Mexico: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean

Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 5 days over the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea or Atlantic Ocean

Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)

>>> Eastern Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

1.)   Concentrated showers and thunderstorms associated with a low pressure area centered about 1300 miles southwest of the southern tip of Baja California Sur have become better organized during the last 24 hours. Further development is expected, and a tropical depression will likely form over the weekend while the low moves generally northwestward.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…high…70 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…high…90 percent

2.)   Disorganized showers and thunderstorms located south of the Gulf of Tehuantepec are associated with a tropical wave and a weak area of low pressure. Conditions are expected to be conducive for gradual development over the next several days, and this system will likely become a tropical depression later this weekend or early next week while it moves generally west-northwestward.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…medium…40 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…high…90 percent

Here’s a satellite image showing both of these areas in 5-days

Here’s a wide satellite image that covers the entire area between Mexico, out through the central Pacific…to the International Dateline.

Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)

>>> Central Pacific:

Tropical Depression 1C  is now active, although poses no threat to the Hawaiian Islands. Here’s the Navy graphical track map, along with a satellite image of this strengthening tropical cyclone.

Tropical Depression 2C  is now active, although poses no threat to the Hawaiian Islands. Here’s the CPHC graphical track map, along with a satellite image of this strengthening tropical cyclone.

Post-Tropical Cyclone 4E (Ela) is dissipating over the ocean, and poses no threat to the Hawaiian Islands, other than rising high surf along our east facing shores. Here’s the CPHC graphical track map, along with a satellite image of this weak tropical cyclone. – Final Advisory

Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:

Typhoon 09W (Chan-hom) remains active in the northwest Pacific. Here’s the JTWC graphical track map, along with a satellite image. Here’s what the computer models are showing.

Typhoon 11W (Nangka) remains active in the northwest Pacific. Here’s the JTWC graphical track map, along with a satellite image. Here’s what the computer model is showing.

>>> South Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> North and South Indian Oceans: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)

Interesting: What we can learn from the Seahorse – One of the ocean’s oddest little creatures, the seahorse, is providing inspiration for robotics researchers as they learn from nature how to build robots that have capabilities sometimes at odds with one another – flexible, but also tough and strong.

Their findings, published July 7th in the journal Science, outline the virtues of the seahorse’s unusual skeletal structure, including a tail in which a vertebral column is surrounded by square bony plates. These systems may soon help create technology that offers new approaches to surgery, search and rescue missions or industrial applications.

Although technically a fish, the seahorse has a tail that through millions of years of evolution has largely lost the ability to assist the animal in swimming. Instead, it provides a strong, energy-efficient grasping mechanism to cling to things such as seaweed or coral reefs, waiting for food to float by that it can suck into its mouth.

At the same time, the square structure of its tail provides flexibility; it can bend and twist, and naturally returns to its former shape better than animals with cylindrical tails. This helps the seahorse hide, easily bide its time while food floats to it, and it provides excellent crushing resistance – making the animal difficult for predators to eat.

“Human engineers tend to build things that are stiff so they can be controlled easily,” said Ross Hatton, an assistant professor in the College of Engineering at Oregon State University, and a co-author on the study. “But nature makes things just strong enough not to break, and then flexible enough to do a wide range of tasks. That’s why we can learn a lot from animals that will inspire the next generations of robotics.”

Hatton said biological systems can combine both control and flexibility, and researchers gravitated to the seahorse simply because it was so unusual. They theorized that the square structure of its tail, so rare in nature, must serve a purpose.

“We found that this square architecture provides adequate dexterity and a tough resistance to predators, but also that it tends to snap naturally back into place once it’s been twisted and deformed,” Hatton said. “This could be very useful for robotics applications that need to be strong, but also energy-efficient and able to bend and twist in tight spaces.”

Such applications, he said, might include laparoscopic surgery, in which a robotic device could offer enhanced control and flexibility as it enters a body, moves around organs and bones, and then has the strength to accomplish a surgical task. It could find uses in industrial system, search and rescue robots, or anything that needs to be both resilient and flexible.

The researchers were able to study the comparative merits of cylindrical and square structures by using computer models and three-dimensional printed prototypes. They found that when a seahorse tail is crushed, the bony plates tend to slide past one another, act as an energy absorbing mechanism, and resist fracture of the vertebral column. They can then snap back to their normal position with little use of energy.

The square system also proved to be stiffer, stronger and more resilient than circular ones.

“Understanding the role of mechanics in these biologically inspired designs may help engineers to develop seahorse-inspired technologies for a wide variety of applications in robotics, defense systems or biomedicine,” the researchers wrote in their conclusion.

Collaborators on this study included corresponding author Michael Porter from Clemson University; Ghent University in Belgium; and the University of California at San Diego. The work was supported by the National Science Foundation, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and the Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology.